


Totally Fucked

by Njaybird



Category: All Souls Trilogy - Deborah Harkness
Genre: Angst, Drinking, Enthusiastic Consent, Explicit Consent, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Smut, Human/Vampire Relationship, Making Out, Masturbation in Shower, Oral Sex, Phone Sex, Shower Sex, Slow Burn, Vaginal Fingering, Vaginal Sex, Vampire Sex, Vampires, not that slow
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-11
Updated: 2020-02-23
Packaged: 2020-05-01 16:37:21
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 10,907
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19181704
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Njaybird/pseuds/Njaybird
Summary: Playing around with how Chris and Miriam get together in The Book of Life.





	1. Your Thing

“So...how does it work? With vampires?”

“How does what work?” Miriam replied absently, without looking up from her laptop.

“Well normally I’d ask a lady out to dinner, but I’m assuming tapas isn’t your thing.” Miriam still didn’t look up, but Chris thought he could see her eyes crinkling, like she was trying to suppress a laugh.

“No, Chris, tapas is not my ‘thing’.”

There was an awkward silence while Chris worked up the courage to ask the obvious follow up question: “So, uh...what is your thing? Because I’d really like to take you out, Miriam.”

She looked up then, shutting the laptop and capturing his eyes. Her voice came out like silk, “I’m a vampire, Chris. What do you think my thing is?” She smiled, showing her teeth. He gulped, his hand lifting automatically to his collar.

Miriam held her composure for just a moment before doubling over with laughter. Chris exhaled. “You’re messing with me,” he said grumpily.

“Yes, I am. And my thing is wine,” Miriam said, once she had recovered her composure. She took a step closer to Chris, and then another. “There must be a bar with a decent wine list here?”

Chris nodded, “I’ll pick you up at 8?”

Miriam was just a breath away now. She reached out and adjusted his collar, letting her palms linger on his chest when she was done.

“Text me the address. I’ll meet you there.” She pulled away, grabbed her messenger bag, and strode out of the room.

——

At 7:58, Chris had already been at the bar for ten minutes, getting more nervous by the second. It had been a long time since anyone had gotten under his skin the way Miriam was. He checked his watch, again, and looked up at the door, again. The bartender — his buddy Jess — sent him a look of pity and came over to see him after serving a couple of postdocs further down the bar.

“Who is this girl, Chris? You look like you’re waiting for a job interview, not a date.” She poured out a shot of something honey-colored and pushed it toward him. Chris ignored it.

“She’s the most amazing woman I’ve ever met, J. She’s gorgeous and smart and absolutely terrifying. I’m fucked.”

“Why thank you, Christopher,” a musical voice intoned behind him. Miriam Shepherd slid onto the stool next to him with other-worldly grace.

Jess’s eyebrows disappeared under her shaggy bangs, and she nugged Chris on the shoulder before putting out her hand, “I’m Chris’s friend, Jess. What I can get for you—?”

Miriam took her hand, and Jess flinched slightly at her cool touch. “Miriam. Nice to meet you. I’ll need your wine list, please.” 

Yep, Chris thought to himself, I am totally fucked.

—

A few hours, and a few bottles of wine later, Chris found himself leaning over Miriam’s stool, one hand resting on its high back by her shoulder and the other gripping the leather seat near her thigh. He was bigger, much bigger, than she was, but he knew she could snap his neck like a twig if she felt the need. The knowledge that this tiny, terrifying woman was hiding preternatural strength was intoxicating — or maybe that was the wine? 

Before he could decide, Miriam caught his eyes and asked the question Chris had been waiting all night to hear: “Will you walk me home, Christopher?”

—

In front of a converted church, Miriam stopped them and turned to face him. “I had a lovely time tonight. I haven’t laughed that much since — well, not in a long time.”

She rested her hands on his chest, tipping her face up towards his. It was all the invitation Chris needed. His mouth met hers in a rush of need, the coolness of her lips and tongue welcome in the humidity of the summer night. A moan rumbled through his chest, and Miriam stepped even closer, her hands moving down his body. She hooked her fingers in his belt and pulled his hips flush against her, his growing erection pressing into her taut stomach. Fuck, she was a good kisser. One hand snaked around her waist as the other wove its way into her thick, curly hair. He couldn’t get enough of her, couldn’t imagine ever having enough of this. But she pulled away.

“You’ve been drinking,” she whispered, not meeting his eyes, “It wouldn’t be right.” Before he could protest, she pecked him on the cheek and was gone into the house.


	2. Denial

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Miriam grapples with her feelings for Chris

Miriam leaned heavily against the door, trying to regain control. Sharp, hot desire filled her veins, but this was more than just lust. She hadn’t been expecting it. Her eyes closed and she groaned, remembering how Chris’s had tugged on her hair, how Chris had cupped her breast, how she could feel Chris’s—

Right on cue, Gallowglass entered, took one look at Miriam, and nearly fell over laughing.

“Shut up!” She threw a shoe at him, which he dodged effortlessly.

“Oh, Miriam,” he wheezed, “I’d know that look anywhere even if I couldn’t smell him all over you. You’re in deep.”

“I need a shower,” she grumbled, shoving past her housemate.

“Make it a cold one!” Gallowglass called after her, still laughing. She flipped him the bird over her shoulder as she climbed the stairs.

—

She had hoped that a shower and a change of clothes would clear her head by providing some distance from Chris’s intoxicating magnolia scent. But once she was under the hot spray, Miriam found her hands wandering. She let her head drop back against the tiled wall as her cool fingers slipped between her legs. She sighed as she found her target, imagining Chris’s much larger hands in place of hers.

At the thought of Chris’s lips along her jaw, and the way his beard would scratch at her skin, Miriam lifted one leg onto the side of the tub and slipped two fingers inside herself. The other hand cupped her breast, sliding across the nipple over and over. She bit her lip so hard she broke the skin, beads of blood spilling out and leaving their salty taste in her mouth.

She hadn’t come to climax this quickly in years, she thought, fleetingly, as the pressure built inside her. One final curl of her fingers, one flick of her thumb, one thought of how Chris would look as he came, and she was over the edge, trembling from head to foot. Her legs buckled and she slid down into the tub, hugging her knees to her chest as she rode out the waves of pleasure.

—

The next morning, she couldn’t resist slapping the smug grin off of Gallowglass’s face.

“You’re in denial, Miriam,” he said, resetting his jaw, “Trust me when I tell you it won’t do any good.”

“I have had the great love of my life. It’s not the same thing.” She avoided his eyes, not wanting to discuss his inappropriate obsession with Diana outright.

Gallowglass winced, understanding her implication. “Perhaps not. But you’re feeling something strong for him — I can smell it from a mile off.” He took her hand in his, and continued more gently, “Bertrand’s been gone a long time. Wouldn’t he want you to be happy?”

Leave it to her old friend to nail exactly what was bothering her. There hadn’t been anyone since her mate’s death. Eight hundred years felt like mere moments whenever she thought of Bertrand. She still felt his loss keenly, even amidst the haze of her desire for Chris  

Answering his own question, Gallowglass continued, “It’s alright to care about him, Mir. You don’t have to be a widow forever.”

A single tear rolled down her cheek in reply, which she quickly dashed away. “Come on,” she said, “we’ve got to get going.”


	3. Tipping Point

She was trying to kill him. She had to be. A week of dates at Jess’s bar, a week of increasingly hot and heavy kissing at her door, and a week of Chris being sent home alone. Not that he was complaining, not really. He didn’t want to rush her, and he knew from talking to Diana that vampires had an entirely different sense of time and its passage than humans. Miriam was ancient; a week was nothing to her. But it was excruciating for him. 

As they were wrapping up in the lab for the day, Miriam initiated their new routine: “See you at 8?” 

Chris decided he was done waiting. “Actually, I thought we could skip the drinks tonight.” Miriam arched an eyebrow and set down her bag. Chris mustered his courage and continued, “Why don’t you come over to my place instead?” 

Miriam held his gaze for a long moment, and then nodded, once. “Text me the address,” she said as she left. 

———

When Chris’s doorbell rang promptly at eight, he deliberately counted to ten before walking over to let Miriam in. He didn’t want his desperation to be too obvious, although she could probably smell it on him anyway. As always, seeing her took his breath away, and it took him a moment to recover himself. 

“Aren’t you going to invite me in?” she asked. 

“Oh! Uh, of course, please come in.” Chris could feel the blood rushing to his ears and cheeks, and he was sure Miriam could sense it. “Isn’t that a vampire thing?” he asked as he stepped aside and shut the door behind her, “You have to be invited in?” 

Miriam laughed and cupped his jaw gently in a patronizing gesture. “Dear, sweet Christopher,” she purred, “that’s a story humans tell to help them sleep at night. If I want to be in your house, I’ll find a way.” She turned, heading toward the kitchen to open the wine she’d brought with her. Chris tried not to wonder how she knew where the kitchen was. It was probably because she could smell the food and dish soap...definitely not because she’d broken into his house and sniffed around. Right? Definitely not. Chris tugged at his shirt cuffs and followed. 

When he rounded the corner, Miriam was already pouring two glasses of red. She passed him one and clinked her own against it. “This is a very special wine,” she said casually, her nose in the glass, “because it’s from the year you were born.” 

Chris raised an eyebrow. “And just how did you obtain that information, Dr. Shephard?” 

“I’m your lab manager, /Dr./ Roberts. It’s my business to know such things. What if there was an accident, and the hospital needed your date of birth, hmm?” She took a triumphant sip of wine, holding his gaze. 

“Is that the only reason you remember my birthday? For emergencies?” Chris’s voice dropped low, a suggestion flirting at the edges of his speech. 

Miriam sighed, “Of course not, you big, stupid —“ 

He didn’t let her finish. His hands were around her waist and his mouth on hers in an instant. She reciprocated, melting into him, opening for him. It was the kind of kiss Chris had only seen in movies up until last week: like time had stopped and there was no one left in the world but the two of them. 

When he needed to come up for air, Chris lifted Miriam onto the kitchen counter and knelt in front of her. 

“Chris...” Miriam breathed. 

“Miriam?” 

“I —“ She swallowed thickly. “It’s been a long time. A really long time.” 

Chris hadn’t seen this vulnerable side to her before. There was a story here, he knew, but it could wait until she was ready to tell it. He met her eyes: “We can go slow. Tell me if you want me to stop.” 

“Okay,” she said, after a moment. Then, more confidently, “Yes.” 

“You’re sure?” 

She nodded. “Show me what that mouth can do.” 

That was more like it. Chris started slowly, kissing along each inch of skin revealed as he unzipped her tall boots. She made a small, gasping sound every time his warm lips met her cool flesh. He learned that her ankles were particularly sensitive, and that she liked it when he flicked his tongue into the bend at the back of her knee. He massaged one foot, then the other, cherishing Miriam’s low, satisfied murmurs. 

He let his hands work their way up each strong calf, leaving a trail of kisses behind them. She was leaning on her elbows now, her head relaxing back, her eyes closed and her lips parted. She was exquisite. 

Slowly, gently, Chris eased his fingers under her fitted skirt, exposing more of her thighs. He nosed just above her right knee, letting his lips brush against the soft skin, but going no further. He had a broad hand on the outside of each thigh now, the skirt hiked up almost to the bend of her hips. He let his thumbs stroke across her legs, giving her time to stop him if she needed to. 

As if reading his mind, she whimpered, “Don’t stop. Please, Chris — “ 

It was all the invitation he needed. He hooked his fingers around the lace of her panties and eased them down over her hips. He let his mouth wander up as his hands moved down. He heard her breath catch and smiled against the inside of her thigh. He wanted to devour her, but he had promised that he would take it slowly, and he was a man of his word. When, at last, he reached his destination, Miriam cried out and reached down to cradle his head with one hand. Chris smiled to himself and continued, licking, sucking, nipping, swirling. 

With each stroke of his tongue, Miriam’s moans grew louder and more urgent. She started crying out in a language Chris didn’t recognize. She was trembling, dripping wet, and absolutely perfect. He picked up his pace, relentlessly driving her closer and closer to climax. 

Miriam came with a shout, her back arched and her legs spasming around Chris’s shoulders. He coaxed her through it, reducing pressure and pace until she was poured out on the countertop, bones liquid, stroking the back of his head with a lazy hand. Chris stood and lifted her into his arms, letting her legs wrap around his waist and her head rest in the crook of his neck. She mouthed softly behind his ear, sending bolts of pleasure down his spine. He held her there for what seemed like hours, letting her come back to herself. 

When she finally lifted her head to look at him, her eyes were rimmed with red. She wiped at them hastily, as if hoping he hadn’t seen. 

“You okay?” Chris asked, “Did I—“ 

She cupped his face in both hands. “You were stunning,” she whispered, holding his gaze. “The tears are a good sign, I promise.” She managed a small smile, but Chris wasn’t convinced. She sighed, her trademark snark resurfacing: “Christopher Roberts, I’m a very ancient and deadly vampire. Do you really thing you’d still have all your bones intact if I wasn’t happy with how you were touching me?” 

Chris cracked a smile at that. “Point taken,” he replied, kissing the tip of her nose.


	4. The Whole Truth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Less smut & more angst in this one — sorry! I promise it’s all back next chapter :)

Miriam fed that night, greedily and mercilessly. She’d found a music student—a starving artist type—who would’ve let her do just about anything for cash. She tucked $500 and some B-vitamins into his pocket after closing up the wound on his neck, and reminded him to drink plenty of water to recover. As he left, he passed her a painfully over-designed business card and said to call next time she was hungry. 

 

After, she sat on the front steps of Gallowglass’s converted church, fiddling with the card and trying to make sense of the past week. Most vampires mated once in their lives. After Bertrand was killed in the thirteenth century, she hadn’t so much as glanced at another man. Several months ago, she’d snapped at Diana for suggesting that 800 years was a long time, and that she should forgive and forget the circumstances of her mate’s death. 

 

It was still true that the loss of Bertrand felt like a fresh and bleeding wound. But something else was brewing, too — something she hadn’t felt in almost a millennium. Her attraction to Chris was more than just lust. But it couldn’t be — 

 

Her giant, ginger roommate opened the front door and interrupted her thoughts. “What are you doing out here, Miriam? It’s almost dawn.” 

 

“I’m thinking.” 

 

Gallowglass sighed and sat down beside her. His big arm swung around her shoulder and pulled her toward him. “I meant what I said before,” he ventured. “Bertrand would want you to be happy, and looked after.”

 

She snorted. “I can look after myself just fine, thank you.” 

 

“Aye, aye, of course you can,” he chortled. “We’d any of us be glad to have you in a fight. But that’s not really what I mean.” He waggled his eyebrows. 

 

“I’ve been looking after myself  that  way, too, for several centuries now, thank you very much.” Miriam squirmed away, scooting across the steps to rest her back against theold stone wall. 

 

“I know, I know!” Gallowglass raised his hands in surrender. “But it’s not just the sex you’re worried about, is it?” 

 

She sighed. Gallowglass could always read her like a book. “I’m feeling — like I felt when I met Bertrand. All those years ago. I — I think what I’m feeling is a mating instinct.” 

 

Her friend nodded. “I thought as much.” 

 

“How can you be so composed about this?” She exploded, “Vampires mate for life. I am still alive, even though Bertrand is gone. Wouldn’t mating with Chris be a betrayal of our vows to each other? Desire is one thing, a relationship is one thing, but I cannot shake this—“ She paused, red tears pooling and spilling over. “I feel protective towards him. I get angsty when he’s been teaching and smells like his students. I felt the first stirrings of it just from hearing his voice over the phone — it’s why I came to New Haven and inserted myself in his lab in the first place. These feelings are powerful. I’m not sure I could resist them even if I wanted to.” 

 

Gallowglass let the night air settle for a moment before replying, “It’s not unheard of for long-lived vampires to take a second mate, Mir. It’s not common, but it does happen.” 

 

“But he’s a warm blood, Gallowglass. He has no idea of the significance, or the commitment —“ she trailed off, wiping the tears from her eyes. “And even if he wanted a lifelong attachment to someone he’s only just met, not to mention a creature he’s only recently found out exists, I’d be setting myself up for the same pain of losing a mate all over again less than a century from now. I wouldn’t survive it. I barely survived the first time.” 

 

“And you wouldn’t make him one of us?” 

 

“Not unless that’s what he wanted. And even so —“ 

 

Gallowglass sighed and clapped his hands on her knees. “You can’t run from this, Mir. Trust me, I have tried.” He gave her a sad smile. “Chris wants you, too. That’s half the heartache saved already.” 

 

Miriam covered his hands with hers and held his gaze. “I’m so sorry, Gallowglass.” 

 

“Oh, don’t you mind about me,” he deflected. “But don’t deny yourself happiness when it’s being offered to you. The gods don’t make such offers lightly.” He kissed her on the forehead, and left her alone in the pale light of morning. 

 

—

 

Seeing him walk into the lab later that morning just about stopped her cold, undead heart. He’d swiped his ID card, shrugged on a lab coat, and gotten halfway into the room before he caught her looking at him. She grinned like a fool for a moment, before mentally slapping herself.  _Get it together, Shephard!_

 

But Chris was smiling, too, relief written all over his face. “I, uh—“ he stammered, suddenly boyish and shy, “I really enjoyed last night.” He was resting his hand against the back of his neck, his elbow extended to one side, and the gesture was oddly endearing. 

 

“Me too,” she whispered. Chris took a step forward and had her in his arms just as the door clicked open. Beaker and Matthew entered together, deep in discussion about a finer point of RNA analysis. Matthew’s eyes flickered toward them for an infinitesimal moment, but it was enough. Miriam stepped away from Chris quickly, and sighed at the thought of the conversation she’d have to have with Matthew later. 

 

Chris looked hurt for a moment, then registered the new arrivals. He mouthed a question at Miriam, “Tonight?” She nodded in reply, her stomach already flipping in anticipation. 

 

—-

 

At 8:00 on the dot, she found herself on Chris’s doorstep again, wine in hand. The conversation with Matthew had gone better than she could have hoped — but after all, who was he to criticize her choice of partner when they were in the midst of a war over his? With that happy thought, she rang Chris’s bell, and smoothed her skirt. 

 

After a moment, there he was. God, she couldn’t get enough of him. Her eyes wandered shamelessly over his body, drinking in every curve of muscle. When her gaze reached his full lips, she couldn’t resist moving in to taste them. Chris responded immediately, pulling her inside and pushing her against the door as he closed it.The bottle of wine dropped with a _thud_ onto the thick carpet.

 

She moaned against his mouth, feeling the rightness of being with him.His hands began to wander, snaking through the curls at the nape of her neck, cupping her breast and ass, burning through the fabric of her fitted skirt. She reciprocated, running her hands down his back and sides. She rucked up his shirt and let her nails graze the skin at his lower back. He groaned in response and ground his hips against her. She did it again, and found herself lifted off her feet, her legs wrapped around his waist.  She felt his teeth against her lower lip.  _Oh, he’s good._

 

He broke away for a moment, pulling back to look her in the eye. 

 

“Miriam. Are you sure?” His voice was stern, but she heard the desire running underneath it. She let her head relax against the wall and let the enormity of the question wash over her. There would be no going back, not for her. And she owed it to him to give him the whole truth. 

 

“I’ve never been more sure of anything,” she said, finally, cupping his face. “But there’s something we need to discuss first.” 


	5. Exodus

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Miriam reveals more of her history to Chris

“So—“ Chris cleared his throat and took a gulp of his wine. He looked slightly shell-shocked, but he hadn’t run away or thrown her out, which Miriam was taking as a good sign. She curled her legs under herself and sank deeper into her end of Chris’s huge leather sofa. He shifted so that he could sit cross-legged on his end, facing her, and tried again. 

“So, last night. When you said it had been a really long time since you...y’know. You meant it had been — what, like 800 years?” 

Miriam nodded, “Give or take.” She knew the exact number, of course, but Chris didn’t need to. 

He took a steadying breath. “You said you met Bertrand when you snuck into the first lectures at al-Qarawiyyin and that was — well I don’t know exactly when, but a lot earlier. And you were already a vampire by then.” 

Miriam sighed. Strictly speaking, it wasn’t polite to ask a vampire her origin story. But if she was going to be Chris’s mate, she supposed she owed him the whole truth. 

“I’m a lot older even than al-Qarawiyyin,” she said. “Do you know your Bible, Christopher?” 

He laughed. “I’m from the South. I spent every summer of my youth in Vacation Bible School. I’d say I know it pretty well.”

She nodded, and continued, “So you’re familiar with the book of Exodus?” 

“Of course.” 

“Do you remember Moses’s sister, Miriam?” 

“Sure. What about her?” 

Miriam snorted. For a genius, he really could be so thick sometimes. “Think about it, Roberts.” 

His brow crinkled in concentration, and Miriam could’ve sworn she heard the penny drop a second later. Chris stared at her, open-mouthed, totally at sea. 

Most humans, in her experience, could just about conceive of a millennium as a unit of time. Many—especially Christians—were able to conceptualize events from the life of Christ forward in time. Very few knew what to do with spans of time beyond that. And she was asking Chris to reach a long, long way beyond that. 

“Moses was your brother?” He spoke each word deliberately, as though his tongue was struggling to form the sentence. 

“Yes.”

“That Moses? Floated in a basket and raised by the pharaoh and freed the Israelites Moses?” 

“That’s not quite how it happened, but yes,” she sniffed. The erasure of the women who had worked alongside her brother — herself included — was a perpetually touchy subject. “He had a lot more help than most modern accounts would have you believe. It’s tidier to have a hero at the centre of the story, I suppose.” 

There was a long silence. 

“Do you still sing?”

“Not since Bertrand.” 

“Right.” 

Another silence. 

“And when were you ... reborn?” Chris ventured. 

Miriam flinched. “I don’t like telling that part of the story. It wasn’t — it wasn’t my choice.” She could feel the blood tears welling up in her eyes and quickly blinked them away. Chris noticed them anyway, and reached across to take her hand. 

“Hey, hey, it’s okay,” he said. “That’s a lot of revelations for one night anyway.” 

She took a deep breath and lifted her face to his. Her next inhale told her that Chris was feeling some concern, and confusion, and he was totally overwhelmed, but he wasn’t afraid. She hoped that would last. 

“I’ve told you that there hasn’t been anyone since Bertrand,” she said after a moment. “But I haven’t told you why.” 

“Okay.” Chris’s eyes held hers, his expression neutral. He was working so hard to stay composed, she thought. It was sort of sweet. 

“Vampires are pack animals. We’re very loyal, and protect our loved ones fiercely. We mate for life, and most of us remain faithful even after death.” It was all coming out in a rush, now. “It’s very unusual for a vampire to have more than one mate, no matter how long they live. We might marry many times or have many affairs, but a mate is —“ She trailed off, searching for the right word. 

“Special?” Chris offered. His thumb stroked over the top of her knuckles — how did such a simple gesture have her nerves alight? 

“It’s more than that,” Miriam said. “I don’t think there’s an equivalent human emotion.” 

Once again, a pregnant silence passed between them before Chris suddenly brightened. 

“But Diana and Matthew are mated, right? Not just married?” 

“Yes...” 

“So it is possible for a vampire to feel mating feelings for a warm blood?” Chris’s question was carefully phrased, but she knew what he was really asking. 

“Yes, it’s possible. In fact, it happens with some regularity. Matthew’s sister Verin is mated to a human.” 

“And it is possible,” Chris continued, still choosing his words with care, “for a vampire with a very long life — such as yourself — to find more than one mate? Potentially. If the right person came along.” 

As he spoke, Chris slid closer and closer to her along the couch, never letting go of her hand. Miriam could hardly breathe. 

“It’s possible.” 

The words were barely out before Chris was all over her, his mouth hungry and demanding, his hands roaming. She welcomed him in, relaxing immediately into his warm, strong arms. God, she could kiss him forever. There was something powerful in their touches, a sense of a cosmic force being put to rights. How had she ever tried to deny this feeling? 

Chris didn’t give her long to worry about it. He shifted his position and wrapped her legs around his waist, laying her back against the arm rest so that she could feel his weight on top of her. She wouldn’t last long if he kept running his fingers up and down her side like that, grazing her breast on each pass. She threw her head back and moaned. 

“Now,” Chris said, letting his lips and teeth graze her collarbone as he spoke, “I believe we have some unfinished business from earlier this evening.” He let one huge hand wander up the outside of her thigh, under her skirt, just in case she’d missed his meaning. 

Her hand covered his, stopping his progress. “Chris, if we do this —“ 

“I know. There’s no going back.” 

“Not for a vampire.” 

“Not for me, either.” She must’ve looked skeptical, because he continued: “I know you say humans don’t have a mating instinct but what I feel for you is — it’s huge, and unstoppable and totally, totally out of my control. I’ve never felt that way about anybody, ever.” He was grinning like a schoolboy now, his chin perched on her sternum. 

“Chris, I — “ 

“I know you’ll always love Bertrand. And I know that I’m a pathetic mortal and don’t have that many years left before I start going gray. But let’s take this thing one step at a time, huh? Maybe I’ll decide to become like you.” 

“I wouldn’t wish this life on you.” The tears were welling up again. 

“That’s exactly why I’d do it.” He cupped her face and brushed a tear aside with a sweep of his thumb. “Not right now. And probably not even next week or next year. But maybe someday, when the time is right.” 

Miriam nodded, unable to speak, unable to form a coherent thought. Every instinct was screaming for him, begging her to just take him already. She was running out of reasons not to. 

“Just — promise me this is for real,” Chris continued, “and as long as I know that, we can figure out the rest.” 

The last thread of resistance snapped. Miriam shoved Chris onto his back and straddled his hips. She rucked up his soft cotton shirt and let her nails drag along his pecs and abs, drawing soft moans from his throat. She ground against the hard, hot length straining the buttons of his jeans. He bucked against her, hands firm on her hips. 

She leaned forward to whisper in his ear as she rolled her hips again, “Does it feel real?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Exodus Miriam is the headcanon you can pry from my cold, dead hands!


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chris and Miriam finally get down to it

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You’ve all been so patient through all the plot/revelations — hope you enjoy your smutty reward 😉

They made their way upstairs in a tangle of limbs, hands, lips, teeth, and tongues. Chris’s shirt was discarded on the first step, where Miriam made him shiver by running her tongue along the midline of his abdomen and teasing at the waistband of his jeans. He retaliated on the landing, where he peeled off her skirt with the help of his teeth. He’d had to unbutton his fly at the sound of her moans, and so his jeans and belt were left at the top of the stairs. Miriam’s blouse was the last to go, pulled up and over her head in the doorway of his bedroom before he lifted her into his arms and carried her inside. 

Even in their frenzy, Chris took time to marvel at the woman, the vampire before him, who had remained celibate for over 800 years and was now offering herself to him. He couldn’t believe how lucky he was, to be the person that got to make Miriam happy for the rest of his life—however long that might be. 

He returned his attention to the task at hand, burying his face in her breasts as he reached back to unclasp her bra. Miriam sighed into his ear and held him close. The goosebumps he felt rising up along her spine told him he was doing something right. Chris smirked to himself and gently pulled the lacy fabric away. He pulled back and made a deep, satisfied sound. Of course Miriam’s breasts were fucking perfect. 

She blushed under his stare—at least, she had the look of someone who was blushing, even though her skin remained cold. 

“It’s just a trick, you know,” she murmured. 

“What is?” 

“This body. It’s to draw in our prey. We are beautiful because it makes us more efficient hunters.” She looked — embarrassed? Chris couldn’t let that stand. He took her hand and brushed back a stray curl. 

“I’m surprised at you, Dr. Shephard. You of all people should know better than to make assumptions based on phenotype.” She didn’t look convinced, so he ploughed on. “Am I your prey tonight? Is this whole thing an elaborate ruse so that you can feast on my blood once you have me naked in bed?” 

“Of course not.” 

“Is your body—which is absolutely banging, by the way—going to disappear after tonight? Has Diana put a spell on you to make you seem more attractive than you normally are?” 

“Don’t be ridiculous!” 

“Then, as far as I’m concerned, it’s not a trick. I’m the luckiest fucking man on the planet, but you are real.” He kissed the tip of her nose, then her eyebrow, and then the corner of her jaw, by her left ear. She gasped, and felt him smile against her neck. 

“And this is real.” His mouth wandered lower, his five-o’clock shadow trailing along her collarbone. She shivered. 

“And these,” he said, with a glint in his eye, “are definitely real.” He took a pert nipple into his mouth and cupped the other breast in his hand. He massaged gently as his tongue and teeth went to work, nipping, sucking, and tugging on the sensitive bud. Miriam’s head dropped back, one arm stabilizing her against the mattress and the other winding itself around Chris’s neck. She moaned, loud and long, drawing a reciprocal hum of pleasure from him. 

He lifted her hips gently and laid her back onto the mattress. He kissed her deeply, her cool olive skin gradually warming to his touch. She sighed happily against his lips, and opened her legs under him. He groaned, giving in to the urge to rock his hips against hers. In response, she tugged at the waistband of his boxer-briefs, begging for him to remove this last barrier between them. He complied eagerly, and she reciprocated, pulling down her lace underwear and baring herself to him. 

They paused for a moment, drinking each other in. Miriam’s eyes wandered across Chris’s newly-exposed body hurriedly, as if worried he might vanish at any moment. Chris knew the feeling. He reached down and gently twined his fingers in her hair, pulling her to him for another deep kiss. 

Her hands began to wander, stroking and teasing everywhere but where he wanted her to touch. He retaliated, sliding his broad fingers down her side and letting his thumbs graze the sides of her breasts. She trembled in his arms. 

“Are you ready?” he asked, meeting her eyes. 

She nodded. “Yes. Please.” 

Chris groaned in relief and reached down between Miriam’s thighs at last. She gasped as his warm fingers met her cool flesh, stroking gently across her slick folds. 

Chris put all of his energy into listening to Miriam’s body, following its cues to tell him where and how she wanted him. His fingers stroked, curled, and coaxed as her arousal built, spurred on by her soft moans and cries of his name. He slipped two fingers gently insider her, letting his thumb rest on her clit, and she arched toward his hand, gasping. He kissed her softly just below her breast, letting his fingers curl, spread, and stroke more sounds of pleasure from her throat. 

He added a third finger and trailed kisses down her body until he was sucking gently on her clit. Miriam bucked against him, despite his other hand on her hip, and keened. Her hands didn’t know where to go — she alternately held his shoulders, cradled his head, and twisted them into the bedspread. She grew more and more frantic as her climax approached, crying out in a language he didn’t recognize and chanting his name over and over. 

She came with a roar, her body trembling from head to foot. Chris eased her through it, slowly letting up until the tremors subsided. Finally, he withdrew his fingers, and Miriam whimpered at the loss. He smiled to himself and moved up the bed to cradle her in his arms. She cuddled against him, relaxing into his embrace. 

When she finally looked up at him, Miriam’s eyes were red-rimmed again. Chris’s brow furrowed. 

“Do you always cry when you come?” he asked warily.

She laughed. “Only when the sex is very, very good,” she reassured him, kissing his frown away. 

Her hands began wandering again, moving down his body to where his erection was still raging. He hissed as she wrapped one delicate hand around it. 

“And what are we going to do about this?” she asked, a wicked glint in her eyes. 

Chris grinned and gripped her waist, turning them so that Miriam was on top, straddling his hips. 

“I don’t know,” he teased. “Why don’t you tell me?”


	7. Feels Like Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CN to say there’s a brief (passing) reference to STIs and menstruation/ovulation/pregnancy at the start — Chris is being decent and asking about protection, basically (because he’s a great guy!). If you’d rather skip that bit, jump to the long paragraph that starts “He pulled her over his hips...”

She was drowning in him, completely overwhelmed by Chris’s touch, taste, and scent. The heat of him between her legs, the feel of his firm muscles and dark skin under her hands, was intoxicating. She could hardly breathe. 

He rolled away and reached into his nightstand, fumbling around for a moment before she stopped him. 

His eyes were wary. “Don’t we need—“ 

She shook her head. 

“But Diana and Matthew—“

“It’s not the same. I haven’t ovulated in millennia, so no risk of pregnancy. And I can’t contract or share warm blood diseasesor infections— at least, not like this.” 

He grinned, “Well alright then. Get over here.” 

He pulled her over his hips for a searing kiss. Desire spiked in her, sharp and hot, as he moved to slip inside her for the first time. She took him carefully at first, giving herself time to adjust but, oh — the  feel of him. It was all she could do not to take him to the hilt at once, to revel in the pain of being stretched open by him, to welcome him into her body with abandon. But another voice told her to savour the moment, to indulge in feeling every inch of him, and to commit to memory every emotion that crossed his beautiful, dark eyes, every soft sound that escaped his full lips. 

When he was finally, finally seated deep inside her, Chris bit back a moan, and she could feel him holding back, not wanting to rush her but desperate to move. She leaned down to kiss him, slow and deep, as she began to rock her hips, gently at first. The stretch was incredible — but then it had been a while. A long while. Too long. 

She didn’t linger with those thoughts. Chris’s hands were twined in her thick curls, holding her to him as she picked up the pace of her thrusts. She arched her back, holding onto his shoulders for leverage, and he cried out at the change in angle. 

“Miriam—fuck me, yes—don’t stop—“ 

She couldn’t suppress the smile that bubbled to her lips, seeing this hulk of a man so completely at her mercy. Gently removing his hands from her hair, she sat up, reaching to the ceiling as she rocked against him. Chris’s eyes grew wide as he took in the sight of her, her long curls bouncing across the tops of her breasts as she rode him. His hands scrabbled for a moment before finding her hips and latching on, encouraging her to a harder, faster pace. Miriam howled, the pleasure rippling from her toes to the top of her head and the tips of her fingers. This was where she belonged,  this was why she had waited so long, why she’d held out for something real and true. 

As she felt her climax approaching, she reached down to cup Chris’s face. “I’m close,” she breathed, “I’m — ah, yes, yes Chris, please —“ One of his hands had traveled to touch her where their bodies were joined and  Oh fuck  it felt good, so good, just a little more and — 

Miriam collapsed over Chris as sheer, absolute pleasure ripped through her. She was still clinging to him when he found his own release a moment later, muffling his shouts against her chest. 

They lay still for a long moment after, holding each other until Chris’s heart slowed down and his breathing steadied. Finally, Chris pulled out and rolled to one side, taking her much smaller form with him. He cracked an eye open at her. 

“Wow,” he chuckled, “is that what all vampire sex is like?” 

The corner of her mouth quirked. “I wouldn’t know.” 

He laughed, low and full, and tucked her head under his chin. “No tears this time,” he observed, “where did I go wrong?”

“Well, you’ve got to have something to aspire to,” she teased, stroking his jaw. 

He held her close, broad hands warm against her back, for a moment longer before pulling back to look her in the eye. “You don’t regret it? Getting serious with a puny warm blood like me?” 

She shook her head, “Not for a second.” 

“Good.” He kissed her soundly before standing up and swinging her into his arms. “What do you say to a shower, Dr Shephard?” 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The whole world’s on fire, so let’s escape in some juicy vampire porn! (And also protest & donate & make phone calls & sign the petitions...)


	8. After the Storm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chris and Miriam deal with the aftermath of Jack’s fit and Baldwin’s arrival in New Haven

Miriam was half undressed, leaning against Chris’s kitchen counter with his hand up her shirt, when her phone rang.

“Don’t answer it,” Chris pleaded, his lips working along her neck. 

Reaching out to silence the device, she saw the Caller ID. 

“Dammit,” she murmured, gently pushing Chris off of her. “It’s Gallowglass. He knows I’m with you — he wouldn’t call if it wasn’t important.” 

Terror passed over Chris’s face. “Diana? The twins?” 

“Let me answer, and we’ll find out,” she soothed, tapping the screen to accept the call. Her voice turned cold when she spoke into the receiver: “Gallowglass? What’s happened?” 

Chris’s hand stroked along her shoulder and down her arm, until his fingers twined with hers. His warmth and strength were comforting, even as she listened to the horrific scene her friend was describing. 

“We’ll be right there.” She hung up, tossed Chris his jeans, and filled him in as she collected her own clothes: “Gallowglass says Jack is having some sort of fit—something to do with his blood rage. They need backup. Pack a toothbrush—it’s going to be a long night.” 

Chris stood, dumbfounded for a moment, before springing into action. In five minutes, they were rushing out the door and headed for home. 

 

—-

 

It was, as Miriam had predicted, a very long night. Sitting on the stairs in Diana’s house, nearly an hour after the witch had left with Gallowglass for who-knew-where, Miriam could see that Chris was still completely, utterly overwhelmed by it all. As he should be, she though ruefully. He’d gotten a taste of vampire brutality, of a totally different kind than Benjamin’s: the kind that was sanctioned, even encouraged to keep order within families. “Every vampire has been bitten by his sire at least once,” she’d told him earlier, in an attempt to reassure him, to let him know that Jack would be fine. But Chris hadn’t seemed reassured. 

And on top of everything else, they’d all witnessed more of Diana’s power than she had previously been willing (or able?) to share. Miriam could understand why she and Matthew had been concealing it. But to see it burst forth, unexpectedly—and to see her best a vampire as strong as Baldwin—was deeply unsettling, even to those of them old enough to remember when such power was more common. For Chris, who had only learned of the existence of witches and vampires a few weeks ago, it had to be completely earth-shattering. It was one thing to study the DNA in the lab and understand creature abilities in theory, but now he was seeing them and experiencing them firsthand. It was—as their students might say—a lot. 

He sighed heavily from across the room, where he was sitting against a doorpost with his knees pulled up to his chest. He looked destroyed. Miriam closed her eyes against the knowledge of what she had to do, and spoke:

“I will understand if this is all too much,” she began. Her eyes were still shut, but she heard his heartbeat pick up, and his clothes rustle as he adjusted his position to look at her.

“If you don’t want to be part of— if you can’t —“ She couldn’t complete the sentence. She could barely complete the thought.

Warm hands cradled her face. When had he moved across the room? 

“Mir? Look at me, babe.” 

Reluctantly, she blinked her eyes open. 

“Tonight was...you know, I don’t even have a word for it.” The corner of his mouth lifted, an almost-smile. “I’m mad as hell at Matthew and Baldwin. I’m scared for Jack, and Diana. Hell, I’m a little scared  of Diana, too, now that I know what all that power looks like.” It was Miriam’s turn to smile. “But I don’t run from a challenge.”

He paused, one hand sliding into her thick hair possessively. 

“And I don’t walk out on someone I love.” 

Miriam’s eyes widened. “What was that?” 

“You heard me.” 

His kiss was deep, hungry and demanding. She returned it eagerly, relief flooding her. Her hands fisted in his shirt and he groaned into her mouth. She was off the ground and being held against a wall a moment later, Chris grinding against her, already desperate. She loved the strength of him, the size of him — it was almost like fucking a vampire, she thought, as his mouth moved from lips to jaw to neck. 

She sighed his name as he found the spot along her collarbone that always drove her wild. He nipped at that place again, and her patience snapped. Chris was on his back, sprawled across the stairs, before he could blink. She knelt in front of him and tugged his jeans and boxers down his legs. He moaned as his cock met the cool air. 

Holding onto his hip with one hand, she licked a long, slow stripe from base to tip. Chris shuddered. 

“Fuck, Miriam—“ 

She didn’t let him finish. In one move, she swallowed him down to the root, the tip reaching into the back of her throat. One of his hands threaded in her hair and the other braced against the stair as he cried out. 

She worked him mercilessly, until a tug on her hair made her look up. 

“Mir— aah — I want you, please— I want, I need to be inside you when I come.” 

She shivered. Gently, she worked her way to the tip and released him, never breaking eye contact. 

In seconds, Miriam was on her front, kneeling over three steps, feeling Chris’s hard length pressed against her ass. She pushed back into him and moaned, desperate for more. 

“Too many clothes,” he grumbled, working her fitting skirt up her legs and over her hips. He didn’t bother removing her panties—he just moved them to one side as his fingers dipped inside her. She gasped. 

“Chris—“

“Tell me what you want, babe.”

“You—please—I want you inside me—“ 

He kissed between her shoulder blades and guided himself inside her. They groaned in unison as he slid home. After one, two slow strokes to help her adjust, Chris gripped Miriam’s hips and picked up his pace. 

In this position, he hit every sensitive spot inside her on every thrust. She was practically sobbing with pleasure, screaming his name, begging him not to stop. 

He reached one broad hand around to cup her breast, stroking over her shirt and bra. Gently, he wrapped the other arm around her hips and lifted her torso, changing the angle and giving him access to stroke her clit as well. She let her head drop back against his shoulder and wailed. 

“That’s it, babe—yes, Miriam, come for me,” Chris grunted, his hips snapping impossibly fast against her. 

“Yes, yes, yes, Chris—“

She was gone—floating, sparking, crying, spasming from head to foot. Chris wasn’t far behind, burying his cries in her shoulder as he shuddered through his release. With his last bit of strength, he lifted her into his arms and settled them both against the wall opposite the stairs. She curled against him, hearing and feeling both their hearts beating faster than they should. 

After several minutes, she felt Chris’s lips moving against her hair. 

“What are we gonna do?” he murmured, the weight of all that had happened this evening returning. 

“We go back to the lab,” she said, trying to sound more confident than she felt. “We keep looking for answers. We wait to hear from Matthew.” 

“Who died and put him in charge?” Chris groused. 

“His father.” 

“Oh.” Chris was silent for a long moment. “Will you join his family, if he makes one?” 

Miriam nodded. “My place is with the de Clermonts. Matthew can be a high-handed bastard but he’d be a much better sire that Baldwin.” 

“Those are really our only two options?” 

“I’m afraid so.”

Chris was silent again. Then: “Well look, I meant what I said. I love you. Where you go, I go. So if you’re in Matthew’s ragtag family, then I guess I am too.” 

She snuggled closer to him, hiding the blood tears that threatened to spill over.

“I love you, too.” 


	9. Ancient Secrets

Chris woke slowly, his eyes bleary with sleep. What was that sound? The shower and — what else?

He swung his legs over the side of the bed and rubbed at his eyes with the back of his hand. Did Miriam have music playing?

As he stood up, ear still cocked, he realized what he was hearing: Miriam was singing.

Slowly, so as not to startle her, Chris moved toward the bathroom. Through the fogged-up glass of the shower door, he could just make out her silhouette. Chris leaned against the door frame and closed his eyes to listen. The sound was like nothing he’d ever heard before—more-than-human and yet recognizable, too. He didn’t know the language but he knew the emotion of the song: love and loss and despair and hope all weaving around each other in exquisite and painful harmony.

Then, abruptly, the sound stopped. Chris blinked his eyes open to find Miriam peering at him around the shower’s glass door.

“I never thought I’d get to hear you sing,” he said sheepishly, moving out of the doorway. “I shouldn’t have snuck up on you, I’m sorry—“

“No, no it’s alright,” she said, reaching her hand out to him. “Will you join me?”

Chris stepped out of his pajama bottoms, took her hand, and swung the shower door shut behind him. Miriam pulled him to her, the coldness of her body and the heat of the water hitting him at the same time. He shivered. Miriam let her head relax against Chris’s broad chest, her ear pressed against his heart. He cradled her head in one hand, and let the other stroke up and down along her spine.

“I didn’t even realize I was doing it at first,” she said after a moment. She tipped her face up toward him. “It’s a love song, from a long time ago.”

“You don’t have to tell me,” he murmured into her hair.

“It’s about being lost. Or — a literal translation would be, ‘wandering’.”

Chris pressed his lips into the top of her head, waiting for her to continue.

“She is searching for a lover who has left her behind —“ She trailed off, her voice choking with emotion.

Chris’s fingers turned her face back to his. “I would never.”

“Philippe used to say that never is a very long time.”

Chris snorted. “And what would Philippe know about it?”

Miriam laughed, high and musical. With the water beading at the tips of her eyelashes, she looked even more otherworldly. Chris couldn’t resist gently kissing one eyelid, then the other. When he tried to pull back, Miriam held him in place with one hand, and brought her lips to his. Their kiss was slow and sensual, unhurried but deeply passionate. It was as if Miriam was trying to pour all of the beauty and heartbreak of her song into the movement of her lips against his. Chris drank in her touch and taste, letting his hands wander up and down her body.

“You will leave me,” she whispered against his mouth, “eventually.”

Chris tried to object, but Miriam stopped him with delicate fingers on his lips.

“No let me finish—let me say this. You will leave me because you’ll have to, whether you’re a human or a vampire or anything else. Because no one is immortal.” She moved her hand to cup his jaw before taking a deep, shuddering breath and going on: “I have to remember that, so that it doesn’t break me when you do. I can’t — “

Chris pulled her close, wrapping his strong arms around her whole body, engulfing her in his embrace. “Bertrand didn’t want to leave you,” he murmured into the top of her head.

“I know that,” she snapped, but her arms wrapped tighter around him.

Chris held her as if he could pull all of her worry and fear into himself, as if he could take on the burden of her grief and leave her free.

“It’s okay,” he said, lips moving against her ear. Chris peppered kisses and gentle nips along her ear, her jaw, her neck. “I’m not going anywhere. It’s okay.” He felt her relax into his body, heard her moan softly as his teeth grazed a sensitive spot behind her ear. “I’m here.” One hand slid down her spine to cup her backside as the other turned her face toward his. “I’m here, Mir. I’m here.”

She answered him by trailing her fingers down his muscled chest, over his toned belly, and lower, lower— Chris groaned when Miriam’s cool hand finally wrapped around his cock. He closed his eyes and let his fingers thread into her thick hair as she worked her hand up and down his length. He sighed, growing harder against her touch. His hips bucked into her hand. He swore.

“You’re here. And you’re mine.” Miriam was staring fixedly at his chest. She let one finger trace a path across his left pec, stopping just over his heart. Chris covered her hand with one of his own and captured her lips again in a searing kiss.

The steady, sliding pressure of her hand was both too much and not nearly enough. In one move, Chris slid his hands around Miriam’s hips, lifted her off her feet, and wrapped her legs around his waist. Her face hovered just above his, their foreheads touching as they breathed together.

“Chris, please—“

“Tell me what you want, Miriam.”

“You,” she gasped, as his hard length slid along her folds. “Only you.”

“You’ve got me,” Chris reassured her as he pushed gently inside her. “I’m yours.”

“Mine,” Miriam sighed, grinding her hips against his, taking him deeper.

Chris groaned low in his chest at the sensation of their bodies joining. Her heels dug into his lower back and her hands gripped his shoulders as she set a slow, steady rhythm.

“ _Mine_ ,” she repeated, using her strength to push Chris back and bracing her feet against the tiled wall. _Oh_ , he liked it when she took control, when she reminded him that she was the superior creature. He bit into her shoulder as she thrust down onto him again. Pleasure spiked down his spine at the sound of her moans.

Miriam cried out when Chris shifted his grip on her so that one arm was wrapped tight around her back and the other was free to touch between their bodies, to stroke against her throbbing clit. She let her head drop against his neck, murmuring curses into his skin.

“All yours,” he growled as he felt her begin to spasm around him. He wove his fingers into her thick hair and tugged so that her eyes lifted to his. “Only yours. Always yours.”

“Chris— _fuck_ , I—”

“That’s it, yes, _yes_ —”

Miriam’s eyes went wide as they climaxed together, pleasure washing over them with a force that buckled his knees. They sank together to the floor of the tub, and Chris registered for the first time that the water from the shower had gone cold. Cradling a trembling Miriam against his chest, he reached up and switched the water off, then tugged a towel off of the rail and wrapped it around her shoulders. She snuggled against him, pressing her ear against his racing heart.

When they finally found the strength to stand up, clean up, and dry off, it was late into the morning.

“You hungry?” Chris asked warily. He was still learning how vampire sustenance worked, and he wasn’t sure whether the question was polite, or relevant.

“No, I’m fine. But don’t let me stop you.” Miriam rose onto her tiptoes for a kiss as she reached around him to grab her bra. They were just settling into the kiss when Miriam’s phone rang. Given the ongoing de Clermont drama, she couldn’t ignore it.

“What does Fernando want?” she frowned, picking up the call. “¿Qué pasa?”

Chris’s human ears couldn’t hear the other end of the conversation, but the deepening crease in Miriam’s brow told him something was very wrong.

“Well it’s not as if I know here he is,” Miriam huffed. “What’s the problem?”

Chris took her hand, asking the obvious question with his eyes. _What’s happened?_

At Fernando’s next words, Miriam bit her lip hard enough to draw blood. “Hold on, I’m putting you on speaker. Chris is here.” She held the phone upright in her palm and pressed the speaker button. “Go ahead, Fernando.”

“Diana is not well, and we’ve had an encounter with Benjamin” Fernando said, his voice coming out in a breathless rush. He sounded like he’d been running. “Gallowglass was supposed to be keeping Matthew informed, but…”

“ _Shit_ ,” Miriam hissed. Chris felt his heart leap into his throat. Wasn’t this whole scion thing supposed to be protecting Diana? And what was the problem with Gallowglass?

Fernando went on: “Exactly. So we need to find Matthew on our own. Are you sure he didn’t say anything to you before he left, Miriam?”

“Nothing. He said it was safer if we didn’t know. He’s so goddamn—”

Chris cut in: “Would he still be with Jack?”

Miriam lifted a perfect eyebrow at him. “Probably. Why?”

“Because we’ve been texting every day since they left. Poor kid needs someone outside the family to talk to once in a while.”

Fernando sighed with relief, “I’ll be in New Haven tonight. Chris and I can go to find Matthew and Jack together tomorrow.” He disconnected the call, leaving Miriam staring at Chris in disbelief.

“Kept that one quiet, didn’t you?” she drawled, running a finger down his chest.

“You vampires are the ones with all these rules about ‘telling tales,’ Chris snorted. “And don’t tell me the Queen of Ancient Secrets has a problem with me keeping a few of my own?”

“Not a problem,” she shrugged. “I’m just surprised you have it in you, given your insistence that all of our research findings be shouted from the rooftops.”

“You and Matthew have been hoarding huge scientific breakthroughs!” Chris protested, “That’s different!”

Miriam laughed. “You’re adorable when you’re all worked up,” she teased. She reached up to kiss him, opening under him in invitation. Chris melted against her for a moment, before he remembered the reason Fernando had called.

“Is Diana okay?” he asked, his heart rate picking up again.

“It sounds like it was just a scare,” Miriam said, running a soothing hand along his stubbled jaw. “The bigger problem is fucking Gallowglass thinking with his dick instead of his brain.”

“Yeah, I’m gonna need the backstory on that.”

“Why don’t I catch you up while you make some breakfast?” Miriam offered. “You must be starving, and Fernando will be here in a few hours. You’re going to need to keep up your strength if you’re planning to go into the lion’s den with him.”


	10. Lonely Nights

Miriam had already finished a bottle of wine, and a book, and a crossword puzzle and the clock was just striking midnight. She groaned. Since when did time pass so slowly? Chris had been gone for just over a week, and while she ached for him constantly, the lengthening late autumn nights were the worst. 

At 1:30, she gave in. She picked up her phone and dialed his number, expecting to get his voicemail, hoping only to hear his recorded voice and leave him a message in return. Instead, he picked up on the second ring, his voice groggy and rasping. 

“Mir? What’s wrong? Are you okay?” 

She hadn’t thought this through. 

“I’m fine, everything’s okay, I just—“ She swallowed around the lump in her throat, forcing her voice into a sarcastic lilt. “I missed you, okay?” 

Chris sighed heavily on the other end of the line. “Oh, thank God. I thought —“ He paused, sighed again. “Never mind. It’s good to hear your voice.” 

“I know we said we wouldn’t call, but—“ 

“Yeah. Me too.” 

The silence stretched just long enough to be awkward.

“Am I allowed to ask how it’s going?”

Chris laughed. “You’re allowed to ask, but I don’t think I’m allowed to answer. House full of vampires, remember? Marcus would take my head off if I jeopardized the mission.”

Miriam laughed, too, the tension broken. “Not if Fernando or Matthew got there first.”

“True!” Chris was still chuckling. “I’ve never seen so much testosterone in one house — and I lived with my wrestling team in college.”

“I can only imagine.” Miriam grinned, picturing Chris in his tight-fitting wrestling gear, sweaty and grappling with an opponent.

“You know the Romans used to wrestle naked,” he said.

She lifted an eyebrow, which he couldn’t see, and scoffed. “I was there, wasn’t I?” 

He sighed again. “That was my attempt at seducing you, Miriam.”

“It wasn’t very convincing.”

“I’m sorry, I don’t have a lot of experience having phone sex with ancient and deadly vampires,” he teased, his voice taking on a dark edge.

Oh.  _Oh_.  Desire flashed, low and deep, within her.

“Miriam?”

“I’m here.” She inhaled slowly. “Tell me what you want me to do.”

“Where do you usually start when—when it’s just you?” His voice had grown hoarse again.

“I—“ She slid her free hand down her thigh. “I would touch my thigh, with just my fingertips. I’d let them drag up and down.”

“And then?”

She switched the phone to speaker and laid it on the duvet. “I’d massage my breast with my other hand.”

“Yeah? How does it feel?”

“So good—my nipples are hard now, I can brush my hand over them and it feels so good.”

“What if it was my hands on them? My mouth on them?” He sounded breathless. 

“Oh God, yes.”

“I’d have my mouth on one and my hand on the other. I’d flick my tongue over the nipple the way you like—“

“Yes, Chris, please—“

“Where would my other hand be, Mir? Tell me.”

“On — oh fuck — on my cunt, feeling how wet I am for you.” Her hand was in her pajama bottoms now, stroking over the damp fabric of her panties. “I’m so wet, Chris, I want you—“

“And I’m so hard for you, Miriam. I can’t resist you, I can’t wait any longer.”

“What would you do next?”

“I’d slide my fingers inside you. I’d pull them over that spot that drives you wild, over and over.”

Miriam pulled her clothes down her legs, giving herself access to do what Chris described. She moaned, “More, please—“ 

“I’d kiss your collarbones, your neck, your jaw—“ He groaned. “Fuck, Miriam, you don’t know what you do to me.”

“Ah, Chris, yes,  _yes_ —“

“I’m inside you now— _oh, fuck_ — you’re so wet, so tight—“

“You feel so good, Chris, so fucking good inside me—“

“—your legs tight around me, your mouth on mine—“

“—so deep, so hard, yes, fuck—“

“—the sounds you’re making, your nails down my back—“

“Fuck, _fuck_ , Chris, I’m—“

“Me too, I can’t — come with me, Mir, come for—“

They cried out in unison. Miriam spasmed around her fingers, her other hand on her neck, where Chris’s mouth might have been.

She could hear him panting and moaning over the phone, riding out the waves of his orgasm. She wished she could see his face. Her body curled itself around a pillow, the way she might curl into Chris’s strong body ifhe was there with her.

“Mir? Still there?”

“Mmmhm,” she purred, settling into the pillow. “That was—“

“Yeah,” he said, a touch breathless. “Me too.”

“When are you coming home, Chris?” 

 

“As soon as I can, babe. As soon as I can.” 


End file.
